Matthew Lane

Paving work on Stone Drive, originally scheduled to take place this past summer, is off the table for this year, according to TDOT. Photo by David Grace.

KINGSPORT — A major street resurfacing project for Stone Drive, originally scheduled to take place this past summer, is off the table for this year, the Tennessee Department of Transportation has confirmed.

The reason given was that the project has been sent out to bid three times this year and each time the bid came in higher than TDOT estimated.

The 3.14-mile section of Stone Drive slated for new asphalt stretches from Fairmont Avenue (the entrance to the Sevier Terrace neighborhood) to just east of Brookside Drive. The repaving would have been of all seven lanes with the work taking place over the summer months, during the night.

TDOT sent the project out to bid in April and May and both times only one bid came in — from W&L Construction — the first time at $2.55 million and then at $2.51 million.

Following the May bid, TDOT pushed the project back and chose to bid it again last month.

Again, the only bid to come in was from W&L, and this time just a little lower at $2.5 million.

TDOT rejected the bid due to it being 10 percent more than department estimates, said TDOT spokesman Mark Nagi.